【菩提好聲音#28】需求帶來的危機 The Crisis of Demand

Every demand we have for the world is cultivated by ourselves and our environment.我們對世界的每一種需求都是自己培養出來的，是環境培養出來的。People today seem to have more and greater demands than in any other era in history.尤其是今天的人，需求似乎比以往任何一個時代更多，更大。On one hand, we are constantly creating demands ourselves; on the other hand, society is manufacturing temptations to trigger those demands.一方面，我們自己在不斷製造需求；另一方面，社會也在製造引發需求的誘惑。Once we are enticed, a demand is born. After being tempted repeatedly, that demand is reinforced until it feels like a necessity.當我們被誘惑之後，需求就產生了；當我們被反覆誘惑之後，需求就被強化為必需了。As demands increase, we must toil to satisfy these escalating needs. This is why modern people generally feel so exhausted.因為需求增多，我們就要為滿足這些不斷加碼的需求而奔波。所以，現代人普遍活得很累。When we have ten demands, we struggle to satisfy ten. When we have a hundred, we struggle for a hundred.當我們有十種需求時，要為滿足十種需求而奔忙；當我們有一百種需求時，就要為滿足一百種需求而奔忙。Our energy is limited, but demands can develop without end. It doesn’t take long before we are mentally and physically drained by the pursuit.我們的精力是有極限的，但需求卻會無止境地發展。不必多久，就會使我們在忙碌和追逐中心力交瘁。Even as life becomes more convenient, we are more tired and more fragile than ever. The more supports we depend on, the more potential factors for insecurity we face.當生活有了更多便利時，我們卻比以往更累，也更脆弱。我們依賴的支撐越多，潛在的不安全因素也就越多。Within every demand lies the fear, anxiety, and pain that come when that demand cannot be met.因為在每一種需求中都伴隨著需求無法滿足時帶來的恐懼、不安和痛苦。Today, people feel extremely inconvenienced without computers or phones. Yet just a decade or two ago, we didn't have these worries or the pain of lacking them.今天的人，離開電腦、手機會覺得格外不便。其實僅僅在十多年前，我們根本不會有這些煩惱。What is true for technology is true for everything else in the world.電腦和手機如此，世間的一切需求莫不如此。Therefore, to manufacture demand is to manufacture potential fear, anxiety, and pain—creating a crisis that could erupt at any moment.所以說，製造需求，就是在製造潛在的恐懼、不安和痛苦，製造隨時可能爆發的危機。